We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ryan Howze a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ryan, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

This didn’t start off as a “business”. Conscious Environment Creation came from a few key events in our recent national history, as well as my own personal stories.

The idea of educating people on history first came about shortly after the death of George Floyd back in 2020. I was shocked and hurt by the reaction not the action itself. The action itself unfortunately wasn’t very surprising but the backlash was. I was so very confused as to how people didn’t recognize the blatant Racial element. People also didn’t understand the historical context, The worst part is they seemed like they didn’t WANT to learn.

Fast forward to May 14th 2022. I was sitting with my grandmother at her 90th birthday party. My phone kept buzzing with notifications first they were easy to ignore than they weren’t. Finally frustrated I checked and realized there was a shooting in my town of Buffalo NY. Not much news but this one seemed different. As the night went on it became more apparent what happened, A White Supremacist had come to my town and shot to death 10 people. I’ll never forget my grandmother turning to me after hearing the news and saying, I thought we fought this so you kids wouldn’t have to. The next morning I received a call from my mother. She was quiet and reserved and used her church lady voice that let me know something was very wrong. She asked if I remember my cousin Kat, I asked immediately “Did she die?”. My mother paused and sheepishly said yes. Then she spoke softly almost certainly holding back tears. “She was at Tops yesterday, she was a victim”. The words hung in the air for an eternity. I was speechless but knew the threat had come home.

Fast forward again to February 2023.

My child comes home from school and sits at the dinner table chipper as usual. It being Black History Month and myself being an educator specializing in the topic I asked them what they were learning about the topic. They replied “nothing”. I was confused. I reached out to the school and offered my services pro bono the school proceeded to give me the run around all while not educating on the topic. For months. From February to June they strung me along and canceled on me wasting my personal and professional time.

That all being said I knew there was a serious problem with out education and our districts willingness to do anything about it. So the next form of Conscious Environment Creation and Say Whaaat History was born. The goal was to teach kids acceptance and care for those different from themselves by learning about Black History.

Ryan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Ryan Howze,

I am pleased to introduce myself and my company, Conscious Environment Creation, which specializes in Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) services for K-12 students. Our Black History assembly program, “SAY WHAAAT? HISTORY,” is designed to offer an innovative and interactive experience, inspiring and motivating students and educators alike. We are currently booking for next year!

Our presentations cover a wide range of topics, including the civil rights movement and the women’s suffrage movement, among others. Using history to discuss themes such as:

Anti-Bullying
Perseverance
Goal Setting
Self Confidence
Creativity
Leadership
and MUCH MORE
Through engaging storytelling, fun facts, and interactive activities, our presentation will have your students saying “Whaaat!?” as they explore the history of America.

Our presentations are also tailored to your specific audience, using a variety of tools to engage and encourage students and educators to reach their fullest potential. We understand that each event is unique, and our customizable pricing structure ensures that you only pay for what you need.

In addition to our presentation services, we also provide effective staff Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) services that focus on creating an inclusive, diverse, and equity-focused community within educational institutions. Our solutions include Black history events, employee training, and workplace evaluations, among others.

If you are interested in booking our SAY WHAAAT? HISTORY assembly program or any of our DEI services, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We will be happy to provide you with a detailed proposal, including the performance fee and any other relevant details.

Thank you for considering Conscious Environment Creation. We look forward to working with you to create a brighter future today.

So what is Conscious Environment Creation? It’s a Diversity Equity and Inclusion company that specializes in Black History as a vehicle to reach k-12 students. Through a program called “Say Whaaat? History”. The goal is to break down the taboo of talking about Race and normalize the celebration of differences in our most impressionable demographic. Kids!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I never thought I would have a very large audience on social media. Now my following on certain apps is larger than the population of my town! What did I do? I just started talking. This answer isn’t very exciting but it’s the best advice I have for someone. Just, Start. Your content will only get out there if you make it. There are people that want to hear from you, and once you find your people its an amazing feeling.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

In this space conversation is everything. Everyone has a product, a widget, a toy. I offer conversation, education and an experience. Decision makers are obviously key but the people along the way are the ones that control the flow of an organization you might want to work with. I don’t just talk to superintendents I spend time with the teachers with the students to understand how they want to receive my services. Then I work out the logistics and details with the decision maker, I’m a storyteller at heart and I know how great it feels to be heard. Make everyone from the receptionist to the custodian to the CEO feel heard and your reputation will proceed you.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.consciousenvironmentcreation.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/ideffoverthink
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-howze/
• Other: http://www.tiktok.com/ideffoverthink

Image Credits
Marie Conta